The Ghost and Mrs Peletier
by BLuIcy
Summary: She had finally started to accept her place in life as punishment for some sin she must have committed when the dreams had started. She never remembered much from them, just flashes here and there of the mountains and beautiful white flowers. She would wake from these dreams and still be able to smell the fresh cool air, pine and oddly enough - leather.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! Two updates in less than an hour woot! So this is the story that I swore to Ace and Mac I wouldn't post till HM was finished and I kept my promise :) HM is done and I was too excited to wait to post this one. I love this idea and I cant wait to see how everyone likes it. I got this idea after watching one of my favorite black and white movies.**

***I do not owe either the Walking Dead or the Ghost and Mrs. Muir***

**Let me know what you think?! **

"Carol, you can not be serious?" Evelyn Peletier cried.

Carol sighed. She had been listening to the same argument all week. "Evelyn please this isn't against you," Carol said while taking a sip of her coffee. "This is for myself and Sophia. This is what's best for _us."  
><em>

"But where will you go? You don't have much money," Evelyn said. Tossing her napkin on the table she pushed her chair away from the table quickly fleeing into the kitchen, sobbing as she went.

Bracing her elbows on the table Carol rubbed her temples. It didn't matter what arguments Evelyn wanted to throw at her or how dramatic she wanted to be, Carol had made up her mind. Bursting back into the dinning room Evelyn sniffed, "What would poor Ed think? Not even cold in the ground and you're running off."

Raising a brow Carol took a deep breath, releasing it through her nose, "Evelyn, really? Ed has been dead a year."

Pushing herself from the table, Carol prepared to stand. She was done having this conversation. They had been going in circles over this for several weeks now and Carol wasn't changing her mind.

"What about Sophia? Have you thought about her?" Evelyn asked quietly.

Carol let loose a soft growl, "What about her, Evelyn? She gritted out. Using everything in her Carol was trying to maintain a civil conversation, but bringing her daughter into this was quickly making her lose her patience.

"You're taking her away from the only family she has ever known," Evelyn cried, tears streaming down her face.

Carol rolled her eyes at her tears knowing they weren't real... nothing about the Peletier family was. It was one of the reasons Carol did not want Sophia growing up around this family. She didn't want her daughter to have the same family memories that she did. On the outside the Peletier family seemed like the perfect southern family, loving and sweet, but they weren't. They were cold and calculated people, willing to do whatever and use whomever they needed to, in order to get what they wanted. At first Carol had been so blinded by the prospect of finally having everything she had ever wanted she had missed the signs.

It wasn't till after her marriage to Ed that they started to show their true colors. The ink wasn't even dry on their marriage certificate and Carol had already fallen out of love with Ed. She had been foolish to stay she knew that, but she had already found out she was pregnant with Sophia and she hadn't wanted her child to grow up with even less than she herself had.

She remembered the day the police had shown up at her house, informing her that Ed had died in a terrible car accident. She had acted the part of a devastated wife, but on the inside she was relieved. She shed tears for Ed, for the loss his family and friends suffered, but she never once shed them out of a broken heart.

Her relief soon turned to fear then anger... anger at herself for the fear that bubbled up inside her whenever she thought of leaving the house she had shared with Ed, the fear of striking out on her own. She had gone from one unhappy home right to another when she married Ed. It was all she had ever known. When her mother in law had asked them to come stay with her Carol had accepted without hesitation and she had hated herself the moment her acceptance left her mouth.

She had finally started to accept her place in life as punishment for some sin she must have committed when the dreams had started. She never remembered much from them, just flashes here and there of the mountains and beautiful white flowers. She would wake from these dreams and still be able to smell the fresh cool air, pine and oddly enough - leather. It wasn't so much the actual dreams themselves that had finally given her the courage to leave, it was feelings they left her with each morning - love and warmth.

"Carol!" Evelyn cried, stomping her foot like a petulant child. "Are you even listening to me?"

Turning her head slowly towards the head of the table where Evelyn stood, Carol nodded her head. "Yes, Evelyn I have been listening, but my mind is made up."

Evelyn must have seen the look of finality in Carol's eyes, because she took several deep breaths in order to calm herself only whimpering slightly when she asked, "Where ever will you go?"

Reaching for her neglected coffee Carol smiled, "The mountains."

* * *

><p>Carol couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she drove her jeep down the main street of Leatherwood, Georgia. This was just the right place for her and Sophia. There was something about the small wooded town nestled deep in the Blue Ridge mountains that just called to her.<p>

She had made arrangements immediately to come to Leatherwood in search of a place for them to live as soon as she saw pictures of the town in a magazine, and with every passing moment Carol was falling more and more in love with the sleepy little town.

Pulling into the small parking lot, Carol climbed out of the jeep. Grabbing up her purse she checked once more to make sure she had her checkbook, something she hadn't touched since Ed's life insurance payout had hit her checking account. It was money that she had never even wanted, but now she couldn't think of a better use for the money than to help rebuild her life.

Carol couldn't contain her excitement as she stepped through the doors of Horvath and Sons Realty. The bell above the door chimed softly as she came through into the tiny office, startling the elderly gentleman seated behind the only desk in the small room. Standing quickly, the man wiped at his face brushing at the egg shells that had fallen onto his shirt.

"Good afternoon ma'am, welcome," he said stretching his hand out to Carol, "I am Dale Horvath."

Grasping his hand she said, "Good afternoon Mr. Horvath, I am Carol Peletier we spoke on the phone. I am sorry to have interrupted your lunch." She nodded towards the mess of egg shells on his desk.

Waving a hand in Carol's direction he pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and wiped at his desk. "Not at all Mrs. Peletier and please, call me Dale."

"Carol."

Motioning towards an armchair seated in front of his desk, Dale pulled a file folder from a drawer. "Now Carol, I pulled these listings as soon as we got off the phone, I am sure one of these will be perfect for you," Dale said, smilingly warmly at her. Opening the folder he pulled the first sheet out placing it in front of Carol. "Now this is a charming little house, right here in the center of town."

Carol glanced at the picture of a small house with a white picket fence. She shook her head at it. It reminded her too much of the house she had shared with Ed.

Moving on to the next paper, Carol dismissed it the moment she got a look at the price, "Too expensive," she muttered.

Making a note of the price, Dale shuffled through the small stack of papers, pulling out a few that he stated were in a similar price range as the one he just showed her. Dale frowned when he looked at the next page. Shaking his head he discarded it without even showing it to Carol. Out of curiousity Carol glanced down at the paper, her breath catching in her chest. Pulling the page closer to her Carol couldn't take her eyes off the photo. The cabin was simple, but beautiful, the wood a deep red and the porch seemed to wrap all the way around the cabin. White flowers grew all around the outside. She knew without a doubt that this one was the one for her.

"Now this one," Dale said holding up a sheet from the folder, "Is just right for you. Two bedrooms, also right here in town..."

What about this one?" Carol asked, cutting him off.

Dale frowned when he saw the paper in her hand, "No, that one isn't for you."

Carol raised an eyebrow "Why? It's beautiful and the price is amazing. Is there something wrong with it?"

"Of course not!" Dale stammered. "None of the properties I show have a thing wrong with them... structurally."

"Great!" Carol said, standing up. "Then I would love to see this one." She headed towards the door, pausing when she realized Dale was not following her.

Several moments ticked by before Dale finally spoke. "Alright," he sighed. "I'll take you to see it, but you will see that it just isn't for you."

**Did you like it? Review?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I am so happy with the reviews I have gotten for this one, I was even more surprised to find out a good many of you knew exactly what movie I got the idea from :D I am taking some different turns with this than what happens in the movie. I hope you guys enjoy it. **

**Thank to the ever wonderful EnglishPoet18 for taking time out of her busy schedule to edit this for me.**

**I just want you guys to know, know matter how long it take I will always finish my stories, but I am up for another promotion at work and if that goes through then I will have even less time to write then I already do, but on the plus side chapter three is pretty much done, and I am starting on chapter four. **

Carol pulled her jeep up next to Dale's pick-up and leaned forward over her steering wheel as she took in the cabin. The picture had not done it justice at all, it was even more beautiful in person. She was surprised to find it was a bit larger than it seemed in its photos as well and she was finding it difficult to contain her excitement. Climbing from the jeep Carol had to force herself to walk slowly up the front porch steps, her excitement mounting.

As Dale searched for the proper key to unlock the front door, Carol walked the wraparound porch. She was surprised to find a small creek running behind the cabin where the porch extended over it almost like a bridge stretching all the way across until it met the woods. Coming full circle back around to the front door she found Dale still fumbling with the keys, muttering curses softly under his breath. Shifting on her feet, Carol resisted the urge to push the kindly old man out-of-the-way and find the key herself.

A wooded sign hung by the door caught her attention. It looked to be hand carved with a simple forest scene depicted at the bottom."Whitetail Acres," she read aloud.

"Hmm.." Dale muttered, pausing in his search as he looked up. "Oh yes, that's the name the owner gave this place." At Carol's confused look Dale added, "On account of all the deer you find around here."

Carol couldn't help but think how much Sophia would love living here, seeing all those deer and other wildlife. She had such a fascination with all things in nature. She had never really been a typical little girl and she didn't care much for cartoons or dolls. Just give her the nature channel with her plastic animals and she was happy. Carol had never really tried to change that, but Evelyn and Ed had, claiming that it wasn't lady like or proper.

"Ah ha!" Dale breathed.

The door to the cabin swung open. Stepping over the threshold Carol was immediately assaulted with the smell - a heavy musky scent. It was obvious no one had lived here for a good while, but underneath was a hint of pine mixed with leather.

Breathing deeply Carol spun around the main room, "How long has it been since someone lived here?" She asked.

It was beautiful, all deep rich colors of mahogany and hunter green. A large stone fireplace was the focal point of the room and the mantle was lovingly hand carved into another woodland scene. "Been a year." Dale replied.

Running her fingers gently over the carved trees, Carol was already picturing herself snuggled into the plush sofa curled up with a cup of tea and a good book. Glancing over her shoulder, a question lingered on the tip of her tongue as Carol found Dale hovering close to the door, shifting from side to side.

"Are you coming in Dale?"

Dale's eyes darted around the room quickly, "I really don't think this is the right place for you Carol." Opening the front door he made a sweeping gesture, as if to usher Carol out the door. "Let me show you the cottage in town...it's much more suited for you."

Crossing her arms over her chest Carol stared at Dale. She knew he had been nervous since she said she wanted to see this place. Letting out a frustrated sigh Carol shook her head, "Okay," she said.

Dale brightened immediately, "Excellent, I promise it's absolutely perfect for you and..."

"No," Carol said, cutting him off mid-sentence, "I wanna know what is up with you. Why do you seem so keen on leaving?"

Dale sputtered, his mouth working up and down, but no real words coming out. Carol raised a brow as she watched him try to work through whatever it was he had to say.

"Nobody has lived here in a year. I have tried, I swear I have, but anyone I get to rent this place..." Dale sighed, scrubbing his hands over his face, "They never last longer than a few weeks."

"What do you mean, they never last longer than a few weeks?" Carol breathed. She was genuinely confused and a bit intrigued now.

"This house...it's...it's haunted."

Carol tried she really did, but she couldn't hold back the laughter that bubbled up inside her. Haunted houses? _Really. _Waving her hand at Dale she managed to pull herself together. "I am sorry Dale, but that is just ridiculous."

Carol saw the look on Dale's face and she could tell he really did believe that the house was haunted. His face was grim as he stared at her, "I have begged the owner's brother to remove the listing, but he wont. He doesn't even return my calls anymore!" Dale cried.

"The owner... is he the one that is supposedly haunting the house?" Carol asked. Walking over to Dale she gave a slight tug on his arm getting him to follow her. She still wanted to see the house.

Dale reluctantly followed Carol into the kitchen, leaning against the fridge watching as Carol opened and closed cabinets, and checked the faucet. "So, the owner?" she asked.

Dale nodded, "Yeah, it's a sad story." Carol paused in her inspection of the kitchen as she waited for Dale to continue.

"It was a hunting accident I believe, don't know what happened exactly, but from what I have heard around town he was shot, in the shoulder I think. Force of the bullet knocked him down a small ravine, heard he hit his head pretty darn hard on the way down."

"That's horrible." Carol said. "That poor man, what his family must have gone through." Carol could sympathize with the family. "I take it he didn't make it?" Carol asked.

Dale shrugged, "I am not really sure. I never knew the man myself. But he must have... been dealing with his brother this whole time."

"What was his name?"

Dale's face scrunched up as he thought, "David, Daniel...I know it started with a D.." Dale trailed off, he was quiet for several moments as he thought. "Daryl! That's it."

"Well I appreciate you telling me Dale, but it doesn't change how I feel about the house."

To say Dale was a bit surprised was an understatement. This was usually the point where all the potential renters had turned tail and ran. Whether it was because the haunting or if they were just creeped out by Dale himself he didn't really know.

Dale blinked when he felt the soft touch of Carol's hand. "Show me the rest of the house?"

An hour later Carol leaned against the railing on the front porch as she waited on Dale to dig the rental agreement out of his truck for her to sign. She couldn't wait to get settled in and start living her life.

_ Welcome home, Carol..._

**::sobs:: Poor Daryl! It broke my heart to write that! Stick with me, you will LOVE chapter three! Let me know what you think! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Good Evening! So here is chapter three, sorry it took so long to get out with the holidays work was a bitch. But we are in slow season now so I am hoping that I will have more time to focus on this story, because I do have so much of it already planned out I just have to actually write it lol. Oh and before I forget, if any of you have seen the movie you might recognize some dialogue that I borrowed from the movie cause its one of my favorite scenes. **

**Thanks to the lovely and amazing Halohunter89 for editing for me, she is the fucking best! LOL **

**So we get a introduction to another player in this chapter, that I think many of you will love ;) **

Carol dropped the small box onto the kitchen counter wiping her hands on her jean clad thighs, amazed at how much dust could collect in just one year. She was exhausted having been at the move for hours now. When Evelyn had brought up the logistics and cost of their move, Carol had realized that she did not in fact have the money to afford movers, but she hadn't let that defeat her. Even if it took her a month to move all their things from the storage unit that would be alright with her.

So a few days earlier she had spent the entire day in the storage unit prioritizing all her boxes, making sure that the most important boxes that her and Sophia would need were the first to make the journey to their new home.

Sophia had been a bundle of energy since Carol had told her about the move and their new home. Every night leading up to them leaving Evelyn's house Sophia wanted Carol to tell her all about the house and the animals they would see. Carol had never seen her little girl smile so much in all her life. This was their third day in the house and Sophia's smile showed no signs of going anywhere and that right there was enough to reinforce to Carol that this was the right decision for them.

"Mama!"

Carol turned towards the shouts of Sophia calling for her, just in time to watch her come running into the kitchen. Barreling towards Carol, Sophia grabbed her mothers hand giving it two quick tugs.

"Mama! You have to come see, outside...there's deer out there!"

Carol chuckled at her daughter's excitement, letting the little girl drag her outside to the porch where there was indeed two deer not more than twenty feet from their front porch. Sophia slapped her tiny hands over her mouth to muffle her squeals of excitement, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. Another doe and her fawn made their way into the clearing next to the house while they watched.

After dinner, Carol cleaned the kitchen as Sophia got herself ready for bed. Glancing out the window Carol watched as the sky became dark and low, ominous black clouds began to quickly roll in. Hearing Sophia shout for her, Carol wiped her hands on the towel heading upstairs. Carol was eager to get Sophia tucked in for the night before the storm came, she knew how much the little girl hated storms.

Carol smiled as she shut Sophia's bedroom door, relieved that not even the impending storm seemed to have an effect on her tonight, her little girl was so full of life these past few days, on the go from the moment she woke up till Carol had to practically beg her to go to sleep. Straightening up the living room as she past through, Carol figured she would use the quiet time to finish setting up the kitchen.

Carol jumped as the first crack of lightning filled the air, the loudest she had ever heard, second later the rolling boom of thunder reverberated over head. Rain began to fall as Carol flipped the light switch in the kitchen, slow at first, splattering on the large bay windows. Then it fell as if from buckets, pounding on the roof. Carol was enthralled, she just stood at the window for several minutes just watching the lighting dance across the sky. She had never seen so many colors in all her life, storms in the city were never this beautiful.

Opening the box on the counter Carol smiled when she saw the bottle of red wine packed inside. It had been a gift from Ed's boss on their first wedding anniversary. She remembered him telling her to open it on a special occasion, unfortunately there had been no special occasions for her and Ed to celebrate. But now, this was as special of an occasion Carol could think of and it deserved to be celebrated.

Pouring herself a healthy glass, Carol headed in to the living room grabbing up the samples of fabric swatches she had picked up. She loved the way the cabin looked already but she felt it could use a little bit of color, her style had always been a little bit outside the box and Ed had never let her decorate outside a very bland color pallet and Carol was looking forward to finally being able to do as she pleased.

Taking a sip of her wine Carol chuckled when she landed on a shade of pink that could only be described as cotton candy, holding the swatch up by the window she tilted her head side to side trying to look at the color from all angles.

"Might make nice curtains for Sophia's room." Carol murmured to herself.

Flipping through the book Carol pulled out the brightest colors and funkiest patterns she could find, placing them all over the living room. She was having fun with the fabric, most of the colors and patterns she pulled from the book she would never use but that didn't mean she couldn't have a good laugh about it. The sudden silence in the house startled Carol for a moment, heading to the window she could still see the rain coming down hard but for the moment it seemed that the wind and thunder had died some.

Carol couldn't hold back the laugh when she pulled what she could describe as the ugliest piece of fabric she had ever laid her eyes on. It was black with cut out white circles with what appeared to be a squirrel's wearing red and white checkered shirts playing the banjo. Pulling the swatch from the book, carol held it up to the window "I think we have found a winner!" she giggled.

Carol wasn't expecting a response so when a loud growl resonated behind her she couldn't stop herself from spinning around quickly, the fabric and her wineglass clutched tightly to her chest. Taking several deep breaths Carol tried to calm her pounding heart, as her eyes scanned the room the feeling of not being alone in the room by herself was causing the hair on her neck to stand up. She repeated over and over in her mind, "_Its only the storm"_. She stood still as stone for several more moments waiting to hear that sound again, but she heard nothing just the storm outside.

Downing the remains of the wine, Carol decided it was time for a second glass this time however, she could not stop the slight shriek when a shadow, in the shape of a human passed right in front of her. Racing to the other end of the room, Carol flipped the light switches bathing the living area in light chasing away all the shadows in the room.

"I know you're here." Carol called out, as the words left her mouth she immediately felt stupid.

A flash of lighting and a crash of thunder had Carol nearly jumping out of her skin as the once bright living room was plunged into darkness.

Releasing a shaky breath Carol slowly made her way back to the kitchen, intent on grabbing the flashlight she left sitting on the counter. Carol's mind was still trying to process what she thinks she saw right before the lights went out. The rational side of her brain was screaming at her for even thinking such things, but the spiritual side of her was there whispering to her that maybe the old man's stories were not that far-fetched.

Standing in the kitchen Carol waited for another flash of lighting to light up the kitchen so she could see where she left the flashlight. Standing in the dark even for just a few minutes was actually starting to set her nerves on edge "This is that old man's fault" Carol muttered, she hadn't been afraid of the dark since she was a small child and now it was freaking her out.

"Finally" Carol bit out when the lightning flashed, making her way to the flashlight Carol's feeling of relief turned to full panic when the flashlight that she clearly had a firm grip on was forcefully pulled from her hand and dropping on the other side of the counter. She could hear it rolling across the floor.

Her fear turned to anger so quickly that it even surprised Carol herself. "God damnit! Daniel, David whatever the hell your name is!"

Stomping around the kitchen Carol dropped to her knees, patting the floor trying to find where the flashlight landed.

"Is this all your good for to frighten women?" Carol snapped, "Well I am not afraid of you, you hear me?"

Her fingers brushed the cool metal of the flashlight, just as it rolled away from her Carol let out a growl in response as the flashlight rolled three feet away from her. "Are you finished yet? I have had just about enough of you for one night."

Carol let out a squeak when the flashlight rolled back towards her, stopping just within her reach. She sat there, waiting to see what was going to happen. She about jumped out of her own skin when a gruff but soft voice filled the kitchen.

"Go ahead, pick it up."

**So...Let me know what you think of this one! I was a bit nervous to post this chapter. **


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